Women’s Life Center

The Women’s Life Center is dedicated to labor, delivery, post-partum, and newborn services. The center provides a compassionate, comfortable, and private environment designed to support you during and after the birthing process. Our interdisciplinary care team works together to deliver the highest-quality care for you and your baby.

Location: 1201 W 12th Ave, Emporia, KS, Entrance F, 4th floor

Phone: 620-343-6800 ext. 24497

Fax: 620-341-7813

Upcoming events for new parents

Nov 25

Car Seat Safety
November 25, 2025 @ 3:00 pm

https://www.newmanrh.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Babies-Born-August-2025.png

For over 90 years, the Women’s Life Center at Newman Regional Health has been dedicated to delivering babies and supporting mothers. Each new birth is a cherished event for our staff, and the miracle of life never loses its awe. With over 40,000 babies welcomed into the world at our center, we celebrate more than 350 births every year—each one a unique miracle. At Newman Regional Health, every delivery is truly a special delivery.

Your Birth Experience

Labor, delivery, and recovery all take place in the same comfortable birthing room. All rooms are private, creating the ideal setting for this special time. While the setting is homelike, the medical equipment and care you will receive are state-of-the-art. We believe that the birth of a baby is a very personal experience. That’s why we offer options for delivery, positioning and comfort measures, anesthesia, and coaching support. We understand that birth is a very personal experience, and the Women’s Life Center is designed to allow families the freedom to choose the birth experience most that is meaningful to them.

Pain management for your comfort

Epidural Anesthesia for Labor

Epidural analgesia, sometimes called an epidural block, causes some loss of feeling in the lower areas of your body, yet you remain awake and alert. An epidural block may be given soon after your contractions start, or later as your labor progresses. An epidural block is given in the lower back into a small area (the epidural space) outside the spinal cord. You will be asked to sit with your back curved outward and to stay this way until the procedure is completed.

After the epidural needle is placed, a small tube (catheter) is inserted through it, and the needle is withdrawn. A continuous dose of medication can then be given through the tubing continuously and you will be given a button to self-administer extra doses. It is fine to lie on the catheter. It is soft and flexible. Although an epidural block will make you more comfortable, you still may be aware of your contractions. You can move when it is done, but you will not be allowed to walk around.

Out of all the options for pain control, epidurals provide the best and most reliable level of pain relief and patient satisfaction.

Anesthesia for Cesarean Section

Cesarean births require anesthesia – either via an epidural, a combined spinal/epidural, or rarely, a general anesthetic. Your anesthesia provider will discuss the options available to you and remain with you throughout the surgery.

An epidural block with more or stronger medications can be used for a Cesarean delivery. In a sense, the epidural can provide a margin of safety since the epidural can be “strengthened” quickly and safely in the setting of an unplanned Cesarean delivery.

Your First Moments Together

One of the first joys of parenting will be holding your baby. Infants are placed skin-to-skin immediately after delivery as recommended by the Kansas High 5 initiative. Cesarean section deliveries take place in Newman Regional Health’s delivery/operating room, which is located near the other delivery rooms in the Women’s Life Center. After delivery, the nursing staff closely observes the mother and baby in case complications arise. A lactation consultant is available for breastfeeding mothers who need assistance after delivery.

We promote family togetherness and encourage you to collaborate with the nursing staff to ensure those who matter the most to you can be with you during your stay. Each day, we observe a ‘quiet time’ on the unit for one hour, and we recommend that moms and dads use this time to rest. Visiting hours are flexible and are determined by the mother’s preference. For the health and safety of your newborn, all visitors must be free of any communicable diseases or symptoms.

Women's Life Center Services & Classes

Newborn Screening Program

Safe Sleep for Infants

Becoming a Mom® Prenatal Class

Breastfeeding Support Group

Virtual Tour of the Women's Life Center

Click through the slides below to take a virtual tour of the Women's Life Center birthing rooms, recovery rooms, and nursery.

Labor and Delivery Suite

As an expectant mother, you want the very best medical care to ensure that your baby is born healthy and that you stay strong enough to care for your newborn. At Newman Regional Health, we offer private rooms – the ideal setting during your special and very intimate time.

Nursery

Newman Regional Health’s Nursery allows everyone to see your precious newborn baby for the first time and share the joy that your newborn baby brings.

The Level II Nursery is equipped to care for infants needing specialized care. Not only is the nursery for babies who need a little extra care, it is also for healthy babies of mothers who need some extra time to recover and rest after delivery. While no one likes to think about having problems with the birth of a child, it is reassuring to know that the staff of the Women’s Life Center is trained to respond to any unexpected emergency that may arise. Most infants who require specialized care remain near mother in our Intermediate Care (Level II) Nursery, which provides neonatal equipment and a specially trained staff to provide expert care around the clock for your baby.

Postpartum and Recovery Rooms

After delivery and a brief recovery, you’ll move to a private postpartum room in our mother-baby unit. For security, identification bands are issued to you, your baby, and your chosen support person. Babies wear a special ID band that ensures they remain safely within the unit.

Our family-centered care encourages you to keep your baby with you as much as you wish, with both of you cared for by the same nurse. This approach supports bonding, education, and open communication.

Each postpartum room is designed with your comfort in mind and includes a refrigerator, microwave, and cordless phone, as well as a twin-size sleeper sofa so a support person can stay overnight. Snacks and beverages are available anytime, and our nurses provide guidance on newborn care, feeding, and your recovery after birth.